The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, in short known as LAMDA, is a conservatoire that has been training artists for over 160 years. The academy’s current home is in Baron’s Court, West London, the former home of the Royal Ballet School, where it has been situated since 2003.
LAMDA offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in acting, directing, and production and technical arts, in addition to a range of short courses throughout the year.
As conservatoire training is selective, LAMDA ensures course numbers are limited and classes are taught in small groups. All training is vocational, with full-time contact hours, hands-on experience, and a range of placements and productions. Teaching combines modules on screen, audio and self-created work with traditional training.
The current facility in Baron’s Court is home to the Salisbury Theatre which seats 220, the Carne Studio Theatre and Linbury Studio, and professional recording and film equipment with an audio studio for voiceovers. Having gone through an award-winning £28.2 million redevelopment, the building is a hive of activity for students who train 9am-6pm every weekday.
The academy has produced an abundance of notable alumni, including: Sam Clafin, Dominic Cooper, Benedict Cumberbatch and Brian Cox.
Each year LAMDA holds a variety of masterclasses in London, and a US Shakespeare Masterclass Tour in person and online.